General Manager, Southern Railway monitors Relief Operations and Progress of Restoration Works

CHENNAI/TRIVANDRUM: General Manager of Southern Railway is holding higher level meeting of Additional General manager, Principle Chief Operations Manager, Chief Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Principle Chief Signal and Telecom Engineer is held at frequent intervals to review the situation and provide all direction and support to Palakkad and Trivandrum Divisions. Railway officers and staff are deployed at all sections and station to speed up work.

Staff and Officers worked round the clock to clear the tracks of debris/carcasses due to earth slips, boulders and uprooted trees. Officials were deployed near sensitive locations such as rail bridges, tunnels and curves to gauge water levels.

In order to get Kerala connected, trains are run to various destinations through the available diverted route of Erode, Dindigul, Karur, Tirunelveli and Nagercoil. Daily specials are run between Ernakulam to Trivandrum via Alleppey from 15.08.2018 that helped many rescue officials to reach different places with support.

Trains are also run between Palakkad to various destinations to enable passengers to move daily. Kozhikkode and Tirur section is cleared on war foot basis With opening of Tirur – Kuttipuram section on 19.08.2018 morning train services via Shoranur to Calicut is fully restored.

Ernakulam – Shoranur section via Aluva continue to remain suspended in view of damages of track at various places. Restoration work is progressing on war foot basis to restore the traffic between Ernakulam Shoranur.

With this, the entire section from Trivandrum to Palakkad also will be opened for traffic with speed restrictions, bring normalcy of rail traffic in Kerala.

Southern railway is also running many special services in the restored section.

Long distance services to Howrah, Gorakhpur, Chennai area is also being planned to enable the stranded people to reach their home towns.